Peace! Kalilintad! Shalom!

Category: Fr. Mario Masangcay, CSsR

  • HOME

    HOME

    August 21, 2022 – 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/082122.cfm)

    In a dream, once an old lady found herself at the heaven’s door. Confidently she  knocks at the door and demands admittance. And she heard God’s loud voice asking, “who are you?” She then replied, “My Gosh, You don’t know me. I am most influential person in our town. I am the mother of our town’s mayor. I have been known for my generosity, an elder of the church’s lay organization and have sponsored the education of your seminarians and ordination of your priests. I even spearheaded the construction of your cathedral in our town”. God replied, “Sorry, I don’t know you”. Angry and disgusted with God, she just stayed outside, grumbling at the doorsteps, while seeing others being admitted inside. Coming to her senses, she once again knocks at the door and now requests for admittance. She said, “Lord, actually, my life has been a failure. I am separated from my husband. My children have been involved with a lot of questionable activities. I have been an oppressive landlord, abusive lady and known gambler. I am a sinner and have caused other’s to sin. I am sorry, Lord”. God replied, “But still I don’t know you, who are you?” Confused and ashamed of herself, she again stayed outside and pondered who she really is before God. Then something dawned in her that made her stand, knocks at the door and humbly admits “Now I know who I am, Lord. Regardless of what happened to me in life, I am still your beloved child.” The door then opened widely and God’s voice joyfully proclaimed “Welcome back, my daughter. Come in.”

    Along our desire to explore life, there is always a deep longing for us to be at home, and be reunited home. Even for those who have already settled in foreign lands, there is always the strong desire to come back home. Same way with those who have settled abroad, there is always a desire to go back homeland – Bohol, Siquijor, Cebu or Luzon.

    For home is more than place where you live. Home is the place where it feels right to walk around without shoes, where people understand you, where when you go there, people have to take you in. Home is where you are accepted, understood, welcomed, belonged and loved.

    Jesus has always preached to us the kingdom of God is our heavenly home, and the Reign of God’s Kingdom is like homecoming and reunion. Like a fiesta, salvation is the moment where everyone is joyfully welcome and celebrating in God’s Kingdom – the occasion where and when we are at home and re-united with God. Particularly in our gospel today, when asked about who are saved, Jesus emphasizes that salvation is not for the few but for everyone – everyone is welcome in God’s kingdom.

    However, in our journey back to our heavenly home, Jesus directs us to strive and be strong enough to enter through the narrow gate. What Jesus meant here is that in life, we must realize that we are just but pilgrims and migrants in this life that we have now. We are here but not from here. As we live & journey with the life we have now, we must do our best to be more at ease and at home with our identity as God’s children.

    For Him, welcomed, saved and redeemed are those who are at Home with their identity as a Child of God. Meaning, it is not what we have done and achieved in life, or even what happened to us in life, but who we are before Him, as His children that matters most. Welcome and Worthy are we of eternal life in God’s kingdom when we are strong and discipline enough to accept and be at home with our identity as God’s Children. As Henry Nouwen would say, “We are not what we do, we are not what we have, we are not others think of us. Coming home is claiming the truth that – I am the beloved child of God.”

    Remember what Jesus said: “the last will be first, first will be last”. Those we consider to be first in life may perhaps be the last one to realize and accept their identity; and those we consider to be last-lost-least in life maybe the first one to realize and accept their identity as Children of God. Question now and still remains, is : “now who am I, who are you before God?…….

    As our recent experiences of the challenges of Covid pandemic times do make us realize & think of death, life, & meaning of all these things, we pray then that we may consistently be & becoming more worthy beloved children of God in faith & life now & always. So May It be. Amen.

  • Love

    Love

    August 19, 2022 – Friday of the 20th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081922.cfm)

    Surely, we are all familiar that the greatest commandment is to Love. But perhaps we may consider why is love the greatest commandment. Why do we have to love, then?

    However we experience it in life, ultimately we realize that Love is our great response to the great Gospel that God is with us. Love is our most appropriate & productive response to the revelation of Emmanuel (God-with-us). Not only out of obligation & as commanded, loving God wholeheartedly is our response to the Good News that God is with us. We love because God is with us, and we are with God. Because God is with us, we come to love God by loving one another and ourselves. And we come to love one ourselves and one another by loving God wholeheartedly.

    Perhaps this can be described clearly in the quote that says: “The greatest thing you will even learn is to love & be loved in return.”

    Here we can highlight to two things.

    First, love is something we learn in life. For us to live in life, we must learn not only to breath the air, to eat food, to sleep and move to grow, but also we must learn to love to communicate with others. Love then is (like any other), the basic language we must learn in life in order to grow in our relationship with others. For us to grow, we must learn the personal, cultural, universal & spiritual language of love. Beyond science, math, survival & others, the greatest capacity we must learn to grow in life is the language of love.

    Second, to love & be loved is the greatest experience we may have in life. Love is not only a noun, but above all, both an active & passive verb. It is active experience -something we do & being done to us. Same way with a child, for us to be loved by others is life-giving & nurturing; and for us to love others in return is self & other-enriching.

    In love, being with God, others & oneself is Great. But without love, being with God, others & oneself is limited.

    So, since God is with us, not only as commanded but in response, we love Him wholeheartedly as we love ourselves & others; and we come to love ourselves & others by loving Him wholeheartedly. And how we love and be loved in return is all that matters in God & in life.

  • RSVP

    RSVP

    August 18, 2022 – Thursday of the 2oth Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081822.cfm)

    In the parable of wedding banquet today, Jesus describes to us the Kingdom of Heaven as a celebration party where everybody is invited to attend & participate.

    Imagine it is your special day – perhaps your debut or your 50th birthday where you invited all your family, relatives & friends. As the day arrives, somehow you can deduce all your invited guests into these categories. First, the excellent guest who are invited, attended & participated in your celebration day. Second, not-so good guests: those who are invited but did not attend, however valid or invalid their excuses may be. Third, the unworthy guests: those who are invited & attended but did not participate. These are guests who came with their own self agenda rather than yours, not properly dressed for the occasion, avoid to socialize with other guests, stays mostly outside, decline to partake in the meal, late to arrive-early to go, & worse, even expect to bring something home from the party.

    Funny, it may be, but we do have experienced these types of invited guests: the excellent (angayan), the not so-good (way ayo), and the unworthy (way angay) guests. So, what kind of invited guest are you?

    Perhaps we may also ask: What kind of guests are we in the Lord’s Eucharist? As foretaste of God’s Kingdom, the Eucharist is our Lord’s celebration of faith & life. We are all invited to attend, participate, & celebrate in His Eucharist. On these pandemic times where & when we are somehow restricted & limited to partake in the Holy Mass, perhaps we examine ourselves as what kind of Eucharist guests we have been & we should be. Have we been & are we an excellent-worthy guests, irresponsive & not so-good guests, or unworthy guests?

    Jesus may have said in our gospel today: “Many are invited, but few are chosen”, not because they are discriminated but because they have been unworthy & irresponsible guests.

    Many times, I was asked: “Father, do we need to, have to and ought to Go to mass every Sunday?” I usually answer this with an advice: “Next time, before you go to mass, listen to yourself first and ask these questions: Who are you before God now? What do you truly long for in life? What are the graces and blessings that you receive this past week? What should you do to thank Him for all these?” In other words, before going to Mass, as preparation, acknowledge first how blessed you are, and these will move you to come and celebrate. Not out of obligation, necessity, convenience, and preference, we come and attend Eucharist to celebrate and give thanks to God for all the blessings He has given, showered, and continually offering us today.

    Though unworthy we may be, Blessed are we always for God still invites us to participate & celebrate in the banquet of Life with Him. May we be God’s excellent & honorable guests to be chosen worthy of His Kingdom & of His sacred banquet. Amen. 

  • Beyond Justice

    Beyond Justice

    August 17, 2022 – Wednesday of the 20th Week in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081722.cfm)

    It is once said that: “Justice is getting what you deserve. Grace is getting what you don’t deserve. Mercy is not getting what you deserve.”

    In our gospel today, all hired-laborers got justice from a just wage for an honest day’s work. However, those who are hired-later received Grace & blessing for a chance to work though undeservingly late & last to work. And they also received Mercy for though deserving of rejection for hiring, they were given a chance for work & just wage instead.

    Judging from the merits of their work, the early-hired laborers complain & ask for Justice based on reward & punishment reasoning. However, not only justice but also grace & mercy are given to the late & last-hired workers, because of and based on God’s generosity & their faith.

    We are reminded here that God judges & sees us beyond our merits, reward & punishment reasoning, & justice.  In His grace & mercy, God loves us out of His generosity along with our faith in Him.

    Now in our relationship with God, are we IN only for His Justice, & our merits – our reward-punishment? OR are we more into His grace & mercy, His generosity & our trusting faith in Him?

    Be reminded then of these words: “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?

    In your generosity, grant us Your Grace & Mercy O Lord, deserving or undeserving we may be. Amen

  • Being WITH our LORD

    Being WITH our LORD

    August 14, 2022 – 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

    Click here for the readings (https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081422.cfm)

    “The Lord be with you” and we normally nowadays reply: “And also with your spirit”, – where decades ago we used to reply: “And also with you.” As Christians, we usually use these words of greetings as our recognition & faith of God’s presence in our midst & in one another.

    A priest once celebrated Eucharist in his own parish church. As he was about to greet these words to the people, he was not able to broadcast, because there is something wrong with the microphone’s connections. While tapping its cord, he eventually regains contact. But unfortunately, instead of the usual “the Lord be with you”, he loudly broadcasts to the people: “There is something wrong with the microphone”. And the people reply: “And also with your spirit”.

    Funny story it might be, but it is also telling us something – that sometimes we need to hear the words differently for us to fully appreciate and understand its meanings. This is what Jesus is also doing when he said the disturbing message in our gospel today, “I have come to set the earth on fire and I wish it were already blazing; I have come not to establish peace but division.” For the apostles and to us to fully understand  the value and consequences of discipleship – of following Him, Jesus has to present us the Good News differently  – somewhat off and disturbing so that we may fathom the height, width and depth of its meaning.

    Like “The Lord be with you. And also with you” greeting.  Surely we are familiar with those words. But come to think of it, though mistakenly said, but somehow it is not totally false that we may also say that there is something wrong with us & with our spirit. Yes, in almost all liturgies and prayers we celebrate, we hear and speak those words. But what does it really mean?

    First, It’s a great Honor and Privilege. We should feel then happy and great that the Lord is here with you and I, with us. Remember the first and primary good news of peace, love and hope ever preached are those words: “the Lord is with You”. But do we really feel great and honored hearing and speaking those words? Are we excited to hear and proclaim it? Or upon hearing and saying those words, we only say: “OK lang”, like “Ya, sounds familiar – We have heard it before, so what’s the fuss?” Like youngsters nowadays might say: “the Lord be with you? OK, fine, whatever”.

    Second, It’s personal and intimate. The Lord is WITH YOU. He is with you near – up close and personal. But do you really want Him to be nearby and near with you — OR would rather have Him far and away from you, who comes in handy when needed only? Would you rather Him as your buddy companion KASAMA, OR your usual “suking” gasoline station, handy only when empty & needed?

    Third, It’s communal. He is not only with You but with all of Us. He dwells amongst us, and lives and stays with Us. He is with and in each and everyone of us, good and bad alike. But do we want Him to be with others & respect His presence with other than ourselves -OR do we prefer that he is exclusively  with you and your family or group but not with the outcasts and rejected or your competitors or enemies?

    Fourth, It’s a Great Task and Responsibility. To welcome Him into our lives demands responsibility and total dedication. Meaning to accept, recognize and believe in the Good News that “the Lord is with you” is to be converted – to completely change your own ways and style of life and be patterned into His own faith and life. This is the cost of welcoming and following Jesus into our lives. Christian Discipleship would cost us a lot, for life will be different & never be the same again. Once you recognize & welcome Him to be with You, you cannot but change your ways & lifestyle. Perhaps that’s the reason why sometimes we don’t take those words: “the Lord be with you” seriously for we know that if we do so, there will division, tensions, disharmony and conflict within ourselves and with others, for all the changes it entails following Jesus demands of us.

    For those who have seen the movie Spiderman 1, its simple message is “Great power comes with great responsibility”. In the same way, to believe in Jesus Christ – The Lord with Us, to follow Him is a Great personal and communal Power, Honor and Privilege but also comes with Great Responsibility. Somehow this is what Jesus is trying to say to us when he said: “I have come to set fire on earth, and how I wish it where already blazing.”

    Indeed, there might be at times something wrong with us in life & spirit; both as the announcer/proclaimer (priest broadcasting: there is something wrong…) & listeners/receivers (people responding: and with your spirit)  of the message. But the good news and message remain always the same: EMMANUEL – the Lord with us… was with us, is with us and will always be with us – whatever, however, whoever & whenever we might be.

    We pray then that we Christians may remain be shaken & disturbed by the deeper meaning of Lord’s gospel, so that we may be more Jesus-like in being passionately responsible for the Good News of Emmanuel- God being with us. Amen.